Container displays that are now in use are limited in their ability to attract one's attention. It is therefore one important objective of the invention to provide a container that is particularly well suited for use as a beverage or product container which is able to display transitory moving images to attract the attention and interest of the user e.g., as a retail beverage container such as a standard beverage can for beer or soda pop as well as for use as a plastic beverage bottle such as a 12-ounce or 2-liter beverage bottle of the type sold at retail outlets and is also adaptable for use as a cup, mug or sports bottle for holding a beverage. In order to be acceptable, the container must be very inexpensive to produce, must have excellent attention-getting qualities, must be easy to use and must be durable enough to stay in good condition for a reasonable period of use.
It has been previously proposed to provide a plastic container with lenticular lenses and a piece of multi-channel plastic laminated over an image. The graphic image would appear to change when the container was viewed from different angles or moved in one's hand. This approach was not successful for several reasons including the high cost of the lenses and the cost of applying them to the container. In addition, lenticular lenses do not conform well to a curved surface such as the surface of a drinking cup and significant distortion is created when the lens material is bent. Moreover, the thickness of the lens made it difficult to nest containers inside one another for storage purposes. Consequently, lenticular lenses have generally been successfully applied to the flat bottom surface of a container, and in this position they cannot be easily seen and enjoyed.
One specific object of the invention is to provide a beverage or food container or vessel for displaying transitory or animated images through the use of a movable sleeve with a provision for reliably retaining the sleeve in place on the container, i.e., prevent it from accidentally falling off either before or during use.
Another object is to create high quality animation on a curved or tapered surface and at low cost. A further object is to create continuous animation of an image around the entire circumference of a cylindrical or frusto-conical container.
Yet another object is to provide a beverage container (a cup, bottle or can) with a sleeve for creating an animated image that can be easily turned by hand without spilling the beverage held in the container. A further object is to enable the movable sleeve to be removed for washing. Still another object is to provide a sleeve which can be rotated on a container such as a cup and yet is attached well enough so that it will not fall off when one drinks from the cup.
Another object is to provide a frusto-conical display container including a provision for assuring that transitory images can be easily seen and are visually effective from all sides of the container.
A further, more detailed object of the invention is to provide an entertaining display of the type described in which the user can remove, reposition and reapply images and patterns in different locations on the container.
These and other more detailed and specific objects of the invention will be better understood by reference to the following detailed description and figures which illustrate by way of example but a few of the various forms of the invention within the scope of the appended claims.